Too Good to be True
by samantharee
Summary: Someone around town is able to manipulate subconscious fantasies while people sleep, making dreams life-like. What happens when Duke and Nathan are affected and they dream of Audrey? How long can they go without her knowing exactly what happened in them?
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's Note: Set somewhere around before Chris came about. Audrey, Nathan and Duke are all going to have a chapter. I don't know how many they'll have since I don't know how long I'll go with this. It's just a little fun for me. Hope it's fun for someone else!_**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Haven or the characters, though I wouldn't mind owning Duke or Nathan quite honestly.**

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><p><strong>Chapter One:<strong> Duke

If the boxes weren't so heavy, he wouldn't need a break.

Duke had been rearranging things on his boat, getting shipments ready to go out. Maybe he was a crook, but that didn't mean Duke Crocker didn't work hard at what he did.

Sitting in his chair, he sank down into it letting his head fall against the back. With a lazy struggle he lifted his long legs onto the small flimsy table in front of him, and took hold of his drink. The beer he'd been nursing was now gone. He groaned, not wanting to get back up to grab another since he'd just sat down. He had gotten into a pretty decent seating arrangement.

Figuring that trying out his Jedi powers was a waste of time, he decided to push himself up from his comfortable position to get another. Before he could actually get anywhere, he stopped short.

"Audrey?" She stood in a trench coat tied around her middle, accentuating the curve of her waist. There was a small lift to the side of her mouth giving off a very dark, but flirty looking smirk. Her hair fell in loose waves around her shoulders. Strands blew around her jaw from the light breeze. Duke felt himself smiling at her, though he was downright confused as to where she'd come from and how he hadn't noticed her. Either way, he was glad to see her, as always.

Something hung from her hand. Looking down he saw she held an unopened bottle of beer between her fingers. "Is it Christmas?" He teased a little uneasily. Her legs were bare and the coat only hit a little below her knees. "Or...did I win a bet that I wasn't aware of?" The only other thing he could see she was wearing were black high-heels. He knew he was wrong at thinking Audrey might have been naked underneath the coat. This was Audrey Parker afterall.

She started away from the bridge of his boat, sauntering towards him like a lioness on prowl. Duke scratched the back of his neck then clapped his hands together, rubbing his palms slowly as he thought of something else to say. Or possibly ask. Audrey's smirk spread into a grin. Like she had him right where she wanted him. Was she serious right now? Was God bringing Duke into his good graces finally? Maybe this was a present? Wait, when was his birthday?

Reaching Duke, she flicked her gaze up, looking at him through her thick lashes. "I'm sure you can guess as to why I'm here." Her tone almost made him sway where he stood. The seductive tone in her voice was layed on heavily.

Audrey Parker didn't have to go to these extremes. He liked her- wanted her the way she looked any time he saw her. She didn't need to put on this little show, though he was fully enjoying it.

In regards to her question, Duke glanced up at the sky as if it held answers there. "Uh, no. No, actually I have no guesses. You filling me in would be greatly appriciated." Sarcasm came easily to him in so many situations. This being a new one, he tried to chalk it to memory. Note: more sarcasm the next time this happens. Which would more than likely be never.

He took the bottle from her and set it on the table beside him. Forcing his irrational thoughts aside for as long as he could hold out, which by judging how Audrey looked, wouldn't be for long.

"Seriously, thanks for the beer, but I don't understand why-" She smiled, pressing her fingers to his lips to cut him off. He held back anymore words that had been on the verge of being said. What were they? He had no idea. What else was there to do now? Of course, he could suck her fingers into his mouth, but his bodily functions weren't connecting well with his brain.

Audrey slowly moved her hands down her chest, letting him follow her movements as she pushed the collar aside, exposing more flesh. Her skin looked smooth and creamy, making Duke's mouth go dry. She took hold of the ties then, watching Duke wet his lips. She had to be kidding. This had to be a joke. A sick joke.

"I figured since you've done so much for me, it was only fair I return all those favors..." Without missing a beat, she pulled open the trench coat leaving Duke nothing to stare at but her, in a matching black lingerie set. A lacey bra held up her nicely shaped breats and small matching underwear hung increadibly low on her hips. He gulped in air, probably sounding like a virgin seeing his first half naked woman, but at the moment he didn't care so much.

He raised his hand, curling it into a tight fist, then bringing it to his lips to bite down so he wouldn't yell out a curse.

Before he could get anything out in words, or even a sound, Audrey let the coat slip from her shoulders. The trench fell down her arms and crumbled around her feet. The whole scene had Duke feeling lightheaded and completely off his game.

Letting him have no time to process, Audrey grabbed his shoulders with a firm grasp, leading Duke back until his legs hit something, causing him to move straight down. Thankfully, a chair was there to catch him. He wasn't sure if he would have been able to peel himself from the floor had there not been something to keep him from it.

"I know you prefer me in your shirt, but I thought this might do." His shirt? Like the night he'd found her? He would have liked to tell her he enjoyed her in anything, but as his mouth opened, she moved forward on him to straddle his lap. Now, his jaw simply hung. His whole body tensed and another part of him was tensing faster than the rest of him.

Duke made an attempt to look around them. It was broad daylight, anyone could see them. Evi could very well come back from wherever she'd gone. However, that little fact didn't help his nether regions calm down any. And it certainly didn't calm Audrey, for that matter.

Her fingers began working at the buttons on his shirt and Duke was letting it happen. Damn it. If this was bullshit and someone was going to pop out, laughing at him with a camera in hand-

The cool air hit his chest when her talented little hands made olympic timing in getting his shirt off. She smiled at him, not even giving him room to breathe. Or room between her warmth and his lap. He could hear himself breathing in deeply, then it coming out in a rush. This was happening repeatedly, and her rubbing into his neck like a damn cat wasn't helping.

"Audrey..." Breathe in, breathe out. He had to repeat it over and over in his head like a mantra. Unfortunetly, he had no words of wisdom from Buddha, to offer himself support for his certain...predicament.

Her thighs tightened, her arms wrapped around his neck and she looked at him again. "We could be caught," she said, her eyebrows rising and falling as she bit on her bottom lip. Was she trying to egg him on? "Yeah, we could. And you're a cop. What would happen if we were seen and reported?" Why the hell was he trying to stop this? His brain was yelling at him that something was off. Audrey wouldn't come to him. Not like this anyway. Yet here she was, basically offering herself on a silver platter.

Duke squeezed his eyes shut when he felt her warm mouth on his chest. Breathe in, he told himself. It wasn't working. His breath was ragged and coming out in short bursts that he couldn't get control over.

As he felt Audrey lift off and away from him, Duke's eyes popped open. But no, she wasn't done with him. He hated himself for being thankful. He should have been doing the right thing. He should have been talking Audrey out of it, or at least figuring out what was going on. But she was standing behind him, bent down with her soft chest against the back of his neck, so his mind was occupied at the moment. But he was Duke Crocker. No one would expect him to be the "good guy" in the situation. The lower part of himself was cursing at him to stop thinking and just do.

Lower and lower, her hands traveled to the button of his jeans where she paused, making him swallow hard and adjust in his chair.

"Do you know how long I've wanted you, Duke?" She undid the button with one hand, two fingers. Duke felt her tongue flick out against his neck.

"Nope."

When he heard his zipper pulling down, he turned his head to the side. Audrey's mouth was already waiting there. She leaned forward, licking his bottom lip in a playful manner. Duke's lower half had finally caught up with the rest of him. Raising one hand, he let it glide up Audrey's arm until reaching her shoulder, pulling her forward a bit more. It felt completely right, her being the one to pull him into the better part of himself. If anyone would change his ways, it would be her. He knew that now.

With a small smile, Audrey began working her hand under the waistband of his briefs and all soft thoughts floated out of his head. "I've wanted you, for as long as you've wanted me," she spoke against his neck.

Duke smiled at that, his eyes closing. "Yeah, well I've pretty much wanted you since the first time that I saw you." He leaned forward more, searching for her mouth...searching...

"I know you have and I don't want you to wait anymore, Duke. But I can't do this with you when you don't even think you're good enough for me."

It'd be nice not to wait anymore, but the damned woman was making it rather difficult- wait. What had she said? When had he told her that?

Something smacked him in the face. Hard. A wall? Grunting and forcing out a rather brutal curse, he used his shaky arms to haul himself up, realizing then that he'd fallen out of his chair.

"Thanks for letting me-" He glanced around his boat for a sign of...anyone. "Audrey?" He called out, pushing himself up to check up and down the dock. No one. She took off?

If he was honest with himself, his pride was really wounded. He'd fallen out of the chair trying to kiss her, embarrassing himself. And to make matters worse, she'd booked it off his boat, off the dock and out of sight. The tease. Or maybe that had been her plan all along? Screw with him? _He knew it!_

Deciding not to let Audrey off the hook, he set off to find the infuriating woman. Dare he'd mention his bruised ego when he saw her?

All he knew was that he needed answers and he needed to find Audrey. She wasn't in her place at the Gull, so that left one more place she'd be.

Nathan's side.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of Haven's character's or storylines.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Two:<strong> Nathan

Nathan layed on the couch in his old office which was now fully occupied by Audrey.

She'd offered to pick up lunch and he hadn't argued it. He needed some time. He wasn't sure why his thoughts were forming around Audrey as he layed there, but he figured trying to force the answers was a bit pointless.

He grunted, letting his arm fall over his eyes to block out the light from outside. He'd layed down to clear his head, but he needed to do something useful with himself. What could he keep himself busy with? More paperwork, definetly. He was sure he'd find a report somewhere that could do some looking over. He was going to be selfish and lazy though, taking his time in building up to that inevitability.

It turned deadly silent throughout the whole station. Most everyone was more than likely on lunch as well.

His chest fell with the gust of a sigh he'd let out as he moved to sit up. He nearly jumped out of his skin realizing Audrey was standing in the doorway, her shoulder propped up against the wall.

"Parker, Jesus. You should probably start making an entrance when you walk into a place. You know, with sound?" She was simply standing there. A plain expression on her face.

"Parker?" Still she said nothing. She didn't even flinch in the least. Nathan frowned, slowly standing up as he looked her over. She looked normal. In a tucked in white tee shirt and jeans. Her gun was on her hip in the normal place. Her makeup was light, her hair straight and framing her face. So, if she seemed so normal to the eye, why did everything inside of him tell him something was wrong?

She closed the distance between them, finally snapping out of the realm she'd placed herself in.

"Parker? What's going on?" He asked her slowly, pronouncing each word so she'd hear him clearly.

A smile appeared on her face. One he'd never seen before, but it was lovely. She followed it with a chuckle. "You don't think I'm real, do you?"

Her question completely threw him off. "Uh..." He drew back a step, not knowing how to go about it the right way. He could lie to her, but she'd know. She had an uncanny ability to read him.

Audrey's hand came out and slowly, she took his large one in her own. As always, Nathan held his breath to avoid a gasp. His whole body stood still.

The gentility in her touch was exactly what he'd been expecting. Unlike any other time though, his heart wasn't pounding in his chest. He let out a smooth, calming breath as he looked back up from their joined hands to her face. A delicate curve to her lips left him feeling comforted. Like there were no words needed. However, there were things to ask. Why was she there so late? Why was she being so quiet when usually, she was the talker out of the two of them?

"What's wrong, Audrey? Did something happen?" She held a single finger up to her lips, a silent way to tell him to stop asking questions.

He didn't know whether to nod or to say something. Maybe ask her another question? He certainly didn't know what to do with his hands.

Audrey walked around him until they weren't touching anymore. In reaching his desk, she turned and braced her hands on the flat surface. Easily and casually, she lifted herself up, biting her lip when she was settled.

It should have felt strange. It should have felt odd and out of place. But the only strange and odd thing he felt was the sudden need to tell her exactly how he felt about her. Words, that for some time now, had been completely absent. It made sense now, the reason his thoughts were bordering on obsessive.

It was because he liked her. More than liked her, he-

As he reached her, Audrey's hands came toward his hips to pull him forward. At the same time, her knees spread to accomidate him and his chest suddenly grew tight. Something was going to happen between them. He could almost taste it.

Her lashes fluttered upward, showing him the exact shade of blue in her eyes that he loved the most. They were so dark compared to his own. One side of blue meeting the other.

It felt good, being with a woman. Being with _Audrey_. Because while nothing around them made sense, even their own confusing lives, one thing did. _This._

Audrey let her bottom lip slip from her teeth, keeping her eyes on his as her hands moved under his shirt to his bare skin underneath. Only thing left for him to do was to lift his arms and let her lift the rest of it off. His sweater dropped somewhere on the floor near them. He wasn't exactly paying attention.

They were partners. More than that, they were friends. But he wasn't going to do this if it was a "friends with benefits" situation. If he was going to have Audrey Parker, he wanted all of her. And if she was Lucy Ripley, then he wanted her, too. A name didn't matter. So long as the woman in front of him now was the one he'd have.

As her hands smoothed over his the width of his shoulders, making Nathan give a fierce shiver. Audrey smiled up at him. An adoring smile. One that he'd never gotten from her before. That was twice now he'd received looks he hadn't realized he'd longed for.

"Audrey..." She shook her head lightly, reaching the bottom of her own shirt to pull up and over her head. Her white bra set off the pink tone in her skin, making Nathan think of how much more pink her skin could get, after she was made love to. After she was sated, lying under him.

Delicate, precise hands slid from his wrists up his arms until she reached his shoulders. His eyes involuntarily closed. His breathing became heavy, deep and slow. There were very few times in his life when he'd been blessed with the chance to feel a woman. Never had anyone felt as amazing as Audrey did. It wasn't because he'd gone so long without feeling anyone. It was _her_.

It was _who_ she was and _how_ she was.

Her hand gripped the back of his neck, drawing his ear to her mouth. She whispered, "There's a reason for everything, Nathan. It's not a coincidence that I'm the only one you can feel."

And he'd known that all along. Even before realizing he held deeper feelings for her.

He wasn't going to wait any longer. Nathan took hold of her shoulders in a haste, holding her in place as he put his mouth against her shoulder. He could feel his stomach drop to his knees. Goosebumps spread over him, only in places he could feel. The places her hands touched. A perfect poetic moment that he knew would be placed under his skin for him to relive over and over again.

When her fingers raked through his hair he was lost. Nathan trailed his mouth up to her throat and nipped at her jaw. Both of his hands ran up the sides of her neck and under her hair until he held full control over where her gaze landed. When her eyes met his own, he took in the few sweet seconds given. Both of them were breathing heavily, almost panting. The sounds ran over eachother until they sounded like one person. He pushed himself even closer against her, earning a small cry from the lips he was closing in on. His thumbs pushed her jaw lightly, causing her head to fall back more so her mouth was more available to him.

"I've been waiting for this," he told her without thinking. Letting his hands roam down to her waist, he pulled her against him as she lifted her knees. Her legs wrapped around him and she pulled him with her as she layed herself back against the desk.

Nathan followed easily, his mouth seeking hers. She kissed his shoulder and he instantly was at her neck. Taking in every scent that rolled off of her, feeling her hand roam over his chest then down his stomach. Her fingertips traced along the waist of his jeans and she bit down on his shoulder, causing him to make a hissing noise through his teeth. It was a mixture of pleasure and pain, both things he was normally numb to.

When he lifted his head, he had his mouth nearly to hers when she suddenly stopped. Her whole body seemed to turn to stone. Nathan only pulled back enough to see her face, where tears filled her eyes.

He suddenly couldn't feel her anymore.

Her voice was small. More than likely because she was trying not to cry when she asked, "Why should I stay with someone like you, Nathan?" The whiplash of the question left the sudden feeling of a brick sitting in the middle of his chest.

"You're as cold as ice. Raised by a man even colder than you are..." Those words themselves were cold. They caused Nathan to crash back into a reality he knew would have caught up to him eventually.

"You can't even feel anything. What if one day you can't feel me? Would I even stay with you?" With a great amount of force, Audrey was able to shove him backward. Nathan's head gave a hard jostle, the only indication of how hard he'd hit the floor. Why would she shove him like that?

As soon as he could, he got himself into a sitting position. He was on the floor of old office, left completely alone. She'd, quite forcefully, pushed him down and then simply walked out. He rubbed his hands over his face, more frusteration over the fact that the ghost of her touch still lingered on his palms, as well as his lips.

He wanted to yell. To curse the sky, heavens, whatever was available. For now, getting himself up and close enough to the wall sounded good enough. Pulling back a clenched fist, he let the wall reap the benefits of his frusteration. His hand broke a hole clean through the wall. It didn't say much for how it was built, but it was thick enough to cause familiar red liquid to well up at a rapid pace around his knuckles.

Getting angry was one thing, but Nathan wasn't one to act out of anger. He'd always been able to control himself, but something in him was tapped and he couldn't ignore it. He wouldn't ignore it.

He grunted loudly, stalking off to his own office. It was obvious his hand wouldn't fair well from this. It didn't look broken, but it was cut up pretty badly. How he'd explain the hole was something he'd have to deal with eventually, too. Wonderful. He'd gotten himself into a whole heap of complications.

It was his own damn fault. Tears of frusteration filled his eyes as he sat in his chair behind his desk. He was rummaging through drawers to find the first-aid kit he kept handy. Handy indeed. It took two different drawers until he actually found the damned thing.

When he finally got his hand cleaned and wrapped up, he stared at it.

What in the world had just happened? Even drugged, Audrey wouldn't have simply _done_ that. So, what had that all been? It felt like her and smelled like her, but was it her? He pushed away the idea that it could have been Lucy. _There was no way in hell_. Was there?

He felt sick.

The door to his office opened in the loudest possible way, making him wince as his eyes snapped toward the opened door and the figure standing in it.

_Oh, Jesus_. He did _not_ have time for this.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Haven, any characters, or storylines.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Three:<strong> Duke and Nathan

Duke stood there, an obvious look of anger written on his face.

"Where is she?" He demanded.

Nathan really didn't have time for this. Actually, he had time, he just didn't want to give it.

"She, who?"

"You know damn well, who! Your partner in crime! Literally!"

"Parker? She was just here. A little over five minutes ago. You didn't see her on your way in? Or on the road?"

"Uh, _no_. No, actually she just left my boat almost fifteen minutes ago. And the woman has some...explaining to do." He paused, letting out a breath. "You have no idea how hard it was not to do a Ricky Riccardo impression with that."

"I can only imagine," Nathan replied dryly. He should have known Duke would work his "humor" in somehow, even when he was angry.

"She was just here? Did she say anything?"

Despite how low Nathan felt, he couldn't help but feel himself flashing back to the good points. The harsh bite to his shoulder. The feel of her silken skin against his lips. The way she moved her hips against him-

"Fine, don't answer me. I know it's all a big joke. Hardy-har!"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"The joke! C'mon, who else is in on it? Couldn't be too many people since you're both loners. No offense."

"Offense taken."

Duke ignored him. "I have to say, I enjoyed myself. Minus the ending."

Nathan was officially sick of feeling completely confused. He pushed himself up and rounded his desk, crossing his arms over his chest as he faced Duke.

"Can you elaborate? I have no idea what you're talking about."

Duke took in a deep breath. "Gonna make me say it, alright." He chuckled, using one hand to ruffle his hair before using it to talk. Duke did that often. Talking with his hands. Nathan always had a hard time deciding on what to look at. His face, or the story his hands told. "Audrey, came onto my boat in that sexy little trench coat. Then _flup_," he was doing the actions with his hands of course, but the imagery was making Nathan grimace at him. "Coat was off, her little under things were there and..." he paused, seeing Nathan's expression. "Cut the shit, Nathan! I know she wouldn't have just done it as a joke by herself!"

Duke seemed to ponder over it for a second. Then he shrugged not caring or knowing either way. "It was a screwed up thing to do. I'm not happy."

"This was today?" Nathan asked him. Duke sighed deeply, making it apparent he was annoyed with Nathan and his lack of not automatically reading his thoughts and following along.

"Yes, Nathan. Today. It was today."

Nathan finally glanced at the clock. Duke was a lot of things, but he wasn't a dramatic story-teller. He also noticed that he'd layed down ten minutes ago and that had to be around the time Duke had started making his way to the station. Something wasn't adding up.

"She was in a trench coat?" Nathan asked for confirmation. Duke nodded slowly, Nathan was shaking his head. "She was in a white tee today. And jeans. Are you sure that was, Audrey?"

Duke paused, touching his hand to his mouth. "I mean, unless we have Lucy Ripley with newly dyed hair and Audrey's lacy underwear, running around impersinating her... I'm pretty sure it was Audrey."

Duke looked at Nathan, waiting for answers since Nathan was often the man with them.

"She was in underwear?" Nathan was having a hard time getting over it. Audrey wouldn't do that. Even as a joke. That much he knew.

"She was in a black bra and black panties and she made it obvious she was ready and willing to-"

Nathan waved his hands frantically in the air. "Don't say anything you'll regret!" He yelled.

Duke smirked. He always felt like Audrey and Nathan had some unspoken bond. Was it possible to come in between that? To be able to be a man Audrey Parker could trust? "Angry, Wuornos? A little jealous that she finds me irresistibly charming? You're losing yet again."

Nathan stared at him. "Like I said, don't say anything you'll regret."

Duke waved a hand at him. "Anyway, I would have tried calling, but I'd rather see her face while she lies. Or tells the truth."

"I doubt she would lie."

"Because you know her so well?"

It was true. Overall, Nathan really didn't know her. He couldn't say what her favourite color was, he couldn't say anything about her choice in movies.

"It wasn't Audrey," he said as a finality to Duke.

He frowned at Nathan, not understanding where his thoughts were. "Why do you think that?"

Nathan sighed. "Because she basically did the same thing with me. Today. Minutes after you, I'm supposing."

Duke clapped loudly a couple of times, the sound bouncing off the office walls. "Wonderful. Just great. So, who was the creep? Lucy? Chameleon?"

"I don't know." Nathan walked over to the phone on his desk, dialing Audrey when a knock came from the door. Both Duke and Nathan looked over, seeing her with two drinks in hand, a bag of food being held between her side and arm. She looked back and fourth between them. Nathan thought she might comment at them for staring and not helping take the things from her hands. Duke thought she might take off, yet again. They were both wrong.

Audrey frowned, let out a huff of breath and said, "What?"


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Four:<strong> Audrey

She was confused to see Duke in Nathan's office. Even more confused by the sudden tension in the room.

They were staring at her.

Nathan looked like he was ready for a vacation. He looked emotionally drained for a reason she didn't know. Duke looked both wary and irritated.

"What?" The least they could have done was take a drink from her hand. She was struggling as she walked into the room. Finally, Nathan put the phone down, carefully sliding the bag from between her arm and body. It had been the only other way to bring it in without using her mouth to hold it. She didn't know if Nathan had been on hold, if he'd been about to make a call, or if he'd hung up on someone.

"What do you mean, "what"?" Duke snapped.

Nervously, she chuckled and set the drinks down on Nathan's desk. "Okay? If I'd have known you were gonna be here, I would have picked something up-"

"No, Audrey Parker. You know that's not why I'm mad."

"Duke, watch it." Nathan's small command was more like a warning, which made her confused.

"Why are you mad then? Please, fill me in," she finally asked.

He stepped forward, touching her white tee shirt. "When'd you have time to change?"

"This morning when I left the Gull."

"Only you made a pit-stop, didn't you Miss Parker?"

"Yeah. I made a pit-stop...to work." She looked at Nathan who's eyebrows hung low, a sign he was working something out in his head.

"What's he talking about?" She was hoping Nathan would have thrown her a hint of some kind. His mouth opened to answer her, but Duke cut him off.

"You came to my boat today. That was you, was it not?"

Audrey blinked at him.

Duke's face began to fall. "That wasn't you?"

She shrugged. "I came to work, I went to get Nathan and I lunch, I came back. No detours, no pit-stops."

Duke's eyes looked to Nathan and Audrey followed his gaze, seeing Nathan was more into the bandage on his hand that was being bled through. Bandage? Blood?

"What the hell, Nathan? What happened?" She didn't bother being careful with him. She grabbed his hand, studying it. "Where'd this come from?" She looked up at him, their faces closer than needed. He backed away first, which almost hurt her feelings. What a stupid sudden reaction.

"Nathan?"

"Can we get back to the person who's walking around as Audrey?" Nathan looked up at Duke and Audrey whirled around to face him.

"Say that again?"

Duke lowered his head, measuring his gaze to hers. He looked like he was searching for something, but Audrey was impatient.

"Walking around as me?"

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, that's what I said."

She looked back at Nathan who was mute, watching and gaging her reactions.

Both of them were making her feel like she was dangerous in some way. Like she was a lion in a zoo and they had been told to keep away from the cages, before she leaped towards them.

"For the love of-"

"Careful, Audrey," Duke cut in.

She sighed heavily. "What do you mean as me? There can't possibly be another chameleon..."

Nathan had shot the chameleon and the body had been disposed. So, what in the hell was walking around as her? Unless it was-

"Lucy," she whispered, turning to Nathan.

Nathan's fingers were on his face, running down to his neck until he finally looked at her. "I thought about that possiblity."

"When did you see her- er, me?"

"A half hour ago at most." Duke said, sounding more than ready to get an investigation started.

"I saw you probably twenty minutes ago," Nathan added.

Audrey was aware of her mouth hanging open. "Wait. I came to see you, too? What was I...doing?"

Everything became way more tense than it had already been. Duke and Nathan both glanced at eachother at the same moment, leaving Audrey to figure they'd already shared words on the subject.

"Did I say where I was going?" She tried asking, hoping she'd at least get that answer.

"Not in so many words," Duke said. Quickly, he added, "Not in any words, actually."

"I'm gonna need a little information here, guys. You leaving me out of the loop is gonna create problems. The less I know, the harder and more impossible it'll be for me to find...me."

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Duke said with a chuckle that followed. He rubbed the scruff on his face, looking to Nathan as if he held all the answers.

Finally, Nathan took a leap of faith. At least, that's what it felt like to her. He'd been short or completely quiet, but now he made a point to throw something out.

"All you need to know is that someone's walking around as you and we need to find them."

She gave up for the moment. "Fine, so where are we starting first?"

Duke walked to the door and opened it, yelling to everyone within ear shot, inside the station. "Has anyone seen Audrey? In a trench coat?"

Nathan pushed passed Duke, quietly asking one officer if he'd seen Audrey twenty minutes or so, prior. The officer looked passed him to Audrey and he nodded towards her. Obviously, he hadn't seen her until right now. With a pat on the man's back, Nathan moved on to the next. Duke of course wasn't so subtle. He'd walk to one group, then turn to someone else to ask louder than necessary.

This was rediculous.

Audrey went back to her own office and sat down, trying to occupy her mind with the reports that weren't finished that she'd kept on her desk. Only, that idea was short lived thanks to Duke who barged in as if he were completely welcome.

He was, but that was beside the point.

"No one's seen you between the time you came in, left, and came back."

"So, I'm invisible?"

That possibility wasn't hard to imagine, but it would make things a whole lot more difficult. Especially with Nathan and Duke being the only ones who could see her. So far, that was.

Nathan hit his knuckles on the door as he walked in, then shoved his unbandaged hand in his pocket. She still didn't know how he got that, but she figured she'd hold it for another conversation. Possibly when Duke wasn't around.

He was still looking at Audrey with a strange expression.

"Was I mean? Did I say something hurtful?"

Duke snorted, sitting down in the chair opposite Audrey. Nathan just stood awkwardly, on the edge of saying something while trying to keep himself from saying anything at all. She threw down the pen she had picked up, which bounced right off of her desk to the floor. She didn't bother picking it back up.

"I've never kept a secret from you."

Duke and Nathan both looked at her, but Audrey was specifically looking straight up at Nathan.

"You..." He paused, glancing at Duke briefly who shrugged at him. The little camaraderie they had going was both nice for a change...and unsettling.

With a sigh, Nathan leaned down on her desk, close enough for her to hear him whisper. He obviously didn't want anyone being able to overhear. "You came on to me."

"I came on to you," she repeated flatly. Out of all things, she hadn't been expecting that option. Maybe she'd heard wrong?

"You came on to me, too. Pretty strongly, I might add," Duke said. Another Audrey was going around hitting on her only two real friends in town? Who else was she going to? The idea that someone else could be thinking Audrey was hitting on them at that very moment made her feel sick. What was this now? The fourth Audrey that had made an appearance?

"How..." She couldn't even finish what she was about to say. Did she want to know the details? She did, but she didn't know how she'd be able to look at either of them in the eye the same way for the next few days.

"Hey, Chief?"

Stan stood in the doorway, a post-it in hand. "We had a call earlier. She asked for you specifically."

Nathan took the note and looked it over. "Why didn't you give it to me earlier?"

"I tried knocking on the door, but you were on the couch."

Audrey stood up, feeling like there was a missing piece they were about to find. It was the same sort of tingling she got in other situations like these.

"You were sleeping and I didn't want to just open the door. It wasn't an emergency call and you were on break..." And there it was.

All three of them looked around at eachother.

Duke snapped his fingers and pointed a finger at nothing specific. "I sat down 'cause I was tired from moving boxes all morning. I- I think I could have fallen asleep and that fall woke me up," he said as he touched his forehead. He looked at Nathan, waiting for his imput. Nathan was nodding, looking right back at him.

"I layed down...everything went quiet and-" He sighed, his eyes snapping to Audrey's. "I think I fell asleep. It was a dream."

"How'd we have the same type of dream?" Duke asked no one in particular.

Again, Audrey felt like she was dangerous. Telling her would give something away which they were obviously avoiding. But she couldn't dwell on it at the moment.

"Thanks, Stan," she said to excuse him.

Nathan said, "Best bet is to answer this call. Look..." He showed the note to Audrey who stood at his side, holding the corner of the small paper. It read that someone's husband had gone in a coma during his sleep. There was an address and Nathan's name specifically.

"Alright. I guess we're going for a visit."

"And I'm coming," Duke added without waiting for a response.

Audrey wasn't about to argue it. She was more concerned with the way Nathan was acting towards her. Sure, Duke was acting a bit off as well, but Nathan had made a complete 180 and that above all worried her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of Haven, storylines, or characters.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Five<strong>

Sandra Jacobson was a sweet old woman.

With grey hair and shakey hands. She had a warm smile, but she wasn't able to hold it long. They could only guess it was because her husband of over fourty years, was in a coma.

She blamed it on a dream.

"Do you want to explain that to us, Mrs. Jacobson?" Audrey asked her in the best fragile voice she could.

"Henry said he'd been having dreams about a woman. He'd been having them for a few days before I made him tell me." Sandra paused, looking between Audrey and Nathan. She was nervous to say something, so they waited patiently. "They were...sexual. He didn't say what happened in them. I think it embarrassed him, but he confessed that much to me." Sandra glanced toward a closed door at the end of the hallway as if Henry was there instead of in a hospital.

"Did he say who?" Audrey asked.

The woman shook her head. "But I think I know who it is. She's a brunette. He's been looking at pictures from when he was growing up. All the ones he layed on top..." The woman pushed herself up out of an old, worn in chair. On the top of her tv was a medium sized box. She handed it to Nathan.

"He layed specific ones on top," she said to them as she sat herself back down.

Nathan opened the box and took out the older photos. With Audrey to his left on the couch, they looked them over. Duke didn't bother to move from the chair he was in, but Audrey held one picture up to flash to him. He shook his head, not recognizing her. Not that Audrey expected him to.

"These all have the same woman," Nathan mentioned to the room. Sandra nodded to him.

"Who is she?" Audrey finally asked.

"Erin Roberts. His high school sweetheart," Sandra told them while smoothing her dress over her legs. It was a clear sign that she was uncomfortable.

"You believe this to be the woman whom he dreamt about?" Audrey asked.

"I believe she was the one to put him into a coma." Sandra's eyes instantly became glossy. The red around the rim of her eyes deepened. The woman was trying her hardest not to cry.

"I'm sorry, but _how_?" Audrey was trying her best to not make Mrs. Jacobson think she doubted her.

Duke had gotten up and sat on the edge of the couch to grab the old woman's hand. She squeezed it right back, giving him a thankful look.

Audrey could only stare, while waiting for the woman to regain herself and give her answer. Duke never seized to amaze her.

Sandra's hazy blue eyes locked onto Nathan's. Taking a short breath before speaking, she said, "I was hoping you'd be able to figure that out."

Something in the way she was looking at him as well as how she'd said it, had Audrey thinking that Sandra had specifically asked for Nathan, knowing he dealt with the strange.

"There's something else," she suddenly said. "I asked him if he'd kissed her, out of curiosity of course..." Duke grinned at her knowingly. "He said they almost did, but each time she'd pull away from him. It took him a few times to figure out he'd been sleeping, it was extremely life-like for him. So, I believe the kiss finally came and... I believe it to be the reason he was put into a coma."

It was a big stretch of a guess.

Audrey thought that over, knowing Nathan was as well. Audrey could understand her jealousy, but she also understood in the trauma with her husband, it was to be expected that she'd focus on particular emotions. Something else came to mind though. If the brunette woman, Erin, was the one in Henry's dream, that meant there weren't two Audrey's. Or rather, not three.

So then why did both Duke _and_ Nathan dream about her?

She turned to Nathan. "Life-like. That explains why you both thought it was actually me," she said. Nathan nodded, meeting her eyes with a strange expression.

Only thing was, Nathan felt it wasn't actually Audrey, the whole time his _dream_ was going on.

"Do you know where Erin is now?" Nathan asked Sandra.

She nodded. "Same house on the outside of town, as far as I know."

* * *

><p>Nathan flipped his phone shut after finishing a call to the station. "We've got Erin Salers address."<p>

"Ah, no longer a Roberts. She's been married. Mrs. Jacobson might like to know that. You know, just out of curiosity." Audrey grinned to herself. "So, we'll drop Duke off and make our way over?"

He nodded, glancing in his rearview at Duke, who was sulking while mumbling to himself in the window.

Audrey figured Duke wouldn't be too thrilled with the idea of being left behind, especially when he was involved. Strangely though, he wasn't arguing it. Even if he was grumbling, he wasn't making a point to force himself along for the trip.

Audrey had a horrible feeling that Duke would try to sleep, just to see what would happen.

Something about it all felt weird.

"I came onto you both in the dream, just like Henry's ex? So, why was _I_ the one to be in _both_ of yours?"

No one said a word.

In the silence that grew, Audrey let her mind wander. What was she like in the dreams? If she was the one coming onto them, was that how they saw her, or possibly how they wanted her to be? She didn't get how _she_ was the one they dreamt about. Duke, she could understand to some extent, but _Nathan_?

Almost as if he could tell where her thoughts were, Nathan glanced at her, hoping he was unnoticed in doing so.

_"You're as cold as ice."_

Those words Audrey had said to him in the dream, rang through louder than any of his own thoughts that were yelling at him to not think about them.

_"What if one day you can't feel me?"_

Nathan gave his head a hard shake, causing Audrey to ask him what was wrong.

He couldn't find words that would settle her. Not when _he_ wasn't even settled.

Glancing at Duke in the back seat, who's eyes kept looking towards Audrey, made it obvious he wasn't alone in the feeling.

It was obvious to Nathan, the guy had always had a thing for Audrey. But at this point, it was almost _unbearable_ to even think about him being with her.

Duke had known all along he had feelings for Audrey. From the moment he pulled her out of the water, he saw...no, he _felt_ something there.

She'd made that one comment in that stupid dream and ever since, it kept tapping him on the shoulder, reminding him it was still hanging there.

He guessed he hadn't ever really thought of it before, but now as he did, he knew it was true.

Duke didn't try to be anything serious with Audrey, simply because he knew he wasn't good enough for her.

When it really came down to it, he supposed a...smuggler, wasn't very good for any sort of woman. But for the first time ever, it actually bothered him. He cared for Audrey. A lot.

He caught Nathan's eyes in the rearview and turned his attention to the trees that lined the road, outside of the window.

He wasn't the only one who cared for Audrey.

It felt oddly comforting, but even more so, it felt pretty _unbearable_.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Doesn't own Haven, sadly.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Six:<strong> Duke

_"Duke, please don't go to sleep and don't kiss me."_

_"Pretty full of yourself, Audrey Parker. Who says it'll be you?"_

_Audrey and Nathan both rolled their eyes at the same time, reminding Duke of how much of a third wheel he was._

_"Kay, bye," he yelled to both of them._

_"Duke, I mean it! Just...at least stay up until I get to the Gull?"_

_"Damn it, this is torture," he said to himself as he walked down the dock towards his boat._

* * *

><p>He was still tired, which was a good thing.<p>

The earlier conversation when Nathan and Audrey had dropped him off was a moot point by now.

"Wake me up if I seem like I'm having a nightmare, alright?" After a full thirty minutes, Duke was done arguing with Evie.

She'd been heading towards the jealous side and Duke wasn't good with jealous women, though he found it amusing. Evie was wondering why Duke and Audrey were both M.I.A. Only problem was, she didn't bother to see if Nathan was as well. If she'd have checked, she'd have known the three of them were gone, which meant they were together.

_On an investigation_, he told himself quickly.

Evie stared at him with her dark eyes, crossing her arms over her chest as she watched him clasp his hands in his lap. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

She kicked his chair with her boot.

Duke's eyes snapped open and he threw his hands open while asking, "What was that for?"

"I haven't seen you all day. I've been tending to the Gull. I had no idea where you went, and you're asking me to watch you sleep? Are you completely out of it today?"

He thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes. Yes, I am out of it today, Evie. Thank you for asking if I'm alright instead of rudely waking me up."

"Rude? What's rude is you demanding things when I just got here ten minutes ago, Duke. Why do I have to wake you if you have a nightmare? What are you talking about?"

Duke watched her put her hands on her hips, facing him the way she did when she was ready for an arguement. He sighed heavily.

Sitting up a bit straighter, he reached for her hand which she reluctantly let him take. "Evie? Will you please wake me up if I look like I'm struggling at all? I'm having...nightmares and I need to be woken before anything happens." He could see in her face that she was caving. Perfect time to smile at her, which he did. She snatched her hand back and turned away, but not before he caught her grin.

"I'll be back up in ten minutes. You think you can be alright until then?"

REM sleep was when someone had dreams, right? School text books were flashing through his thoughts, but it was faded and blurry. It took a while before someone reached that deep of sleep, correct?

"Yeah," he called out to her, not knowing for sure.

He sat back, noticing it was more uncomfortable than it had been that earlier. Still, he was tired enough that he could feel himself dozing.

Maybe it wouldn't be Audrey this time. Maybe this time, he'd have Evie grace him with her pressence.

Or Charlize Theron and Eva Mendez. At the same time.

Duke grinned to himself over his rather dirty thoughts.

He could hear a seagull above, but it started to fade. He was trying to not think of Audrey.

When he heard clicking, he noticed how they sounded like heels. Evi hadn't been in heels; she was in boots.

He opened his eyes and instead of the sky being grey, it was sunny out.

"Duke."

Lifting his head, he saw Audrey. The same hair, the same makeup on her face from his previous dream of her.

But the trench coat was gone. Audrey was dressed in the very shirt she'd been in that morning he'd first met her.

He jumped up, clapping his hands once then rubbing them together before speaking. "Now, I know this isn't the real Audrey. So, you might as well just tell me what you're up to and we'll go from there."

But the woman was grinning like a cat that ate the canary.

"I'm very real, Duke." She reached the first button in the middle of her chest and the black bra underneath was viewable.

Duke held his hands out to stop her. "Hold on, let's talk for a minute."

She shook her head, biting down on her lower lip as she walked forward.

Fantasy Audrey was bound and determined to tease the hell out of him. So, at least he might be able get a few hints as to who it really was in the mean time?

"Who's controlling you?" He asked her.

Audrey frowned at him. "No one's controlling me but you." When she finally reached him, he took her hands, hoping to keep them from his jeans.

"You put a man in the hospital, whoever you are."

This made Audrey pause for a second. But just as soon, she came right back at him again, reaching for the buttons on his own shirt.

"I come from right here..." She lifted a finger and tapped his temple lightly, letting her finger slide down to his lips.

Where he needed to avoid her.

"And what about Nathan?"

She scoffed at him. "Nathan? He's my partner and nothing more."

"Glad to hear it." And he was. "But you went to see him as well, didn't you?"

She shook her head. "Not me." She pushed open his shirt and leaned forward, placing a kiss in the middle of his chest. "I only want you, Duke." Her eyes flickered up to his. Duke could feel himself losing the battle with her. So long as he didn't kiss her, he'd be fine, right?

He let her unbutton his jeans as his fingers worked at the buttons on her- his shirt. He couldn't help wanting her. Keeping himself from touching her felt like an impossible idea. He didn't know why.

Just as he managed to push the shirt from her shoulders and let it fall onto the deck, her clever hand easily made it into his jeans to grope him.

His hands clenched her arms, but he made himself lighten his hold. Restraint was gone. He simply wanted her.

Duke pulled her hand away from him and dropped to his knees, hooking his arm around her waist to bring her down with him. As gently as he could, he layed her underneath him.

"Who knew FBI Agents could have such a body on them," he said to her, making his way to her neck.

Audrey chuckled in a loud breath. "Stop talking."

That was fine with him.

After a bit of exploring, Duke found he already had a particular favorite area. On her right side between her hip and rib cage was a ticklish spot. All it took was to lightly rub over it and she flinched and jerked.

Within seconds, it turned from being funny to sexy, when instead of touching her there with his fingers, he used his mouth.

The playfullness ended when his fingers slipped under the lace of her underwear.

Audrey gasped and she let her arms lay beside the sides of her head. When her hands started clawing at the deck for something to hold onto, Duke hovered his mouth over hers.

He couldn't kiss her, but he could damn well let himself feel the hot breath coming out of her mouth in hard bursts.

He let one finger slip into her and Audrey, let out a moan Duke never imagined he'd ever hear from her. The noises she was making weren't ones he'd made up in his head before.

He loved her like this. Pliable and completely his.

Duke found a rythm that had Audrey's back arching; her chest pressing against him. He'd take her here, then he'd take her underdeck. Then eventually they'd make it back to the Gull...

Her hooded, heavy eyes looked up at him. "Duke?" She breathed out harshly. She was close and he was going to be the one to bring her there. He didn't know that feeling alone would be so damn fulfilling.

But he was afraid of what he was gonna hear her say.

"It's dangerous for me to be with you..."

"Why's that?" His own voice sounded rugged. Probably due to the pain and pleasure of the way his erection was straining against his jeans.

"Who's trying to kill you, Duke?"

And just like that, everything came to a screeching hault.

He felt like he'd been imaginarily slapped.

No, that was a real slap.

Evie was staring down at him with a heated glare.

"I've been yelling your name."

He was instantly up, looking himself over. He had all of his clothes on. His jeans were still buttoned. Evie frowned at him.

"Your phone's been going off for the past few minutes."

"Wh-" He had no words. He was breathless though, that was for sure.

But he didn't know whether it was because of everything with Audrey, or if Evie's slap was to blame.

He grabbed the phone from the small table that had been next to him and looked it over. Audrey had called.

"How convenient," he said mostly to himself.

Evie frowned at him. "What's convenient?"

"Hmm?" He smashed his lips together, then smacked them back open. "I'm gonna go to the Gull."

"Well, I'll just go with you. I'm supposed to be there right now anyway, but I...needed something from below the deck."

He clicked his tongue and grinned at her. "Just take the rest of the day off."

That obviously didn't sit well with her at all.

"Duke Crocker, don't start dictating to me!"

"I wasn't dictating." He blew out a breath and glanced at the name on his phone again. Audrey Parker.

"What's with all the mouth noises?"

_Mouth noises. Audrey. Her unexpected moans. The way her mouth shaped a perfect breathless "Oh"._

"I gotta go to the station. You go to the Gull. I'll meet you there."

"The station?"

"I need to see Nathan." He cringed at himself. "I mean, I have to talk to him... Nevermind. I'll see you in a bit."

"Damn it, Duke!"

But he was already walking down the dock. It was weird that after such a dream he'd need to see Nathan, but he was the only one he'd known had dreamt of Audrey. Filling in gaps sounded pretty good at the moment considering he was at a loss for words, confused, and not to mention completely deprived of sexual release.

Dialing Nathan, he picked up on the fourth ring.

"Duke..." Nathan didn't sound happy.

"You at the station?"

"I am _at_ the station... Why?"

"Good. Stay there."

He hung up before he could hear Nathan's questioning.

They needed to work out a plan and they both needed more information.

If someone was able to sneak into his head, they'd know there was a guy somewhere who wanted to kill him.

What if that person knew them, or what if it was the person themselves?

Paranoid? Hell yes he was. It was the only way to stay alive. Stay suspicious and suspect everyone. If the guy now knew how to mess with his mind, he'd know the exact way to get him without Duke seeing it coming.

"Fucking perfect," Duke muttered.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven:** Nathan and Duke

Nathan shut the door behind him, facing Duke who was all worked up.

This was the exact state he preferred Duke _not_ to be in when he was around.

"What is it?"

"I tested out the theory."

Nathan gave him a blank look. "The theory," he repeated flatly.

Duke nodded eagerly. "I went to sleep to see if I'd, you know, dream again..."

Nathan's rose an eyebrow in response. "Yeah?" It felt like he might as well have been watching the Weather Channel.

"And I did. It was still Audrey. And uh, we kinda went further this time."

Nathan grimaced. "Please, don't elaborate on that."

"I wasn't going to," Duke snapped back at him. He then smiled. "You aren't lucky enough to know."

"How unfortunate for me," Nathan remarked.

Duke rolled his shoulder. "I wasn't able to get very far, so you're gonna have to sleep sometime soon, and find out what you can."

With a large sigh, Nathan looked down to his shoes. "I think it'd be a better idea if I didn't do that."

"What, not sleep? Yeah, good luck with that." Duke snorted. "But seriously? See if you can get anything out of her. It's like she knows my thoughts before I even say them. Or something like that."

"Knows your thoughts, or something like that." Nathan mimicked. "Wow, that's a lot to take in. And here I thought you'd be more vague than descriptive."

Frowning, Duke asked him, "Was that sarcasm?"

"If anyone would be able to pick out sarcasm, I'd think it'd be you."

"Well, it came from you, so that's not saying a lot."

Nathan rolled his eyes. "Is that all?"

"Uh, no." He took a long breath which made Nathan impatient. Not that he ever wasn't when it came to Duke.

"_Today_, Duke."

"Yeah, I'm getting there... The person can get deep into thoughts. Whoever this person is, they know someone's trying to kill me."

"And?"

"What do you mean, "_and_"? I just fucking told you, Nathan! They found out someone's trying to kill me! They can work it to where they'd be one step ahead of me! Who knows what other minds they've looked into for more information!"

"Because whoever this is is _so_ obsessed with you, that they're _only_ messing with people to get to _you_?"

Duke opened his mouth to retaliate, but paused. "Ok, so I'm a little paranoid and have narcissistic tendencies..."

"Tendencies would imply that it came about at sporadic times, Duke. Narcissism is a personality disorder, so for you, tendencies don't exist. You're narcissistic _all_ the time."

Duke's eyes slowly looked from one corner of the room to the other, until he narrowed them right at Nathan. He opened his hands at him and suggested, "Shut up?" Nathan waved his hand at him to continue. "Anyway," Duke pressed on. "My point is, this person knows things before I do. It would make this a lot easier if we both were on the same page."

Nathan simply blinked at him.

"Before I woke up, the first time, she said something about me thinking I wasn't good enough for her."

The look on Nathan's face pissed Duke off instantly.

"Before you tell me your thoughts on the matter, I think you should know that in the second time, she asked who's trying to _kill me_."

Finally, Nathan became serious. "She said something like that to me, but not in those words. She...knew things."

They both stood in place, silent as they worked through their own thoughts.

"You didn't _kiss_ her, I'm guessing?" He almost choked on the word because the thought made him want to punch a wall. Again.

"No, she kind of avoided that." Duke frowned after he'd said it out loud. Something came to his mind then. "Which makes me think she might not have wanted to?"

Nathan had the same thoughts. "Either for more information from you or because that's not her, or it's, intention," Nathan offered.

Duke nodded in agreement. "I'll tell you though, I was pretty damned determined to get answers, but keeping control over my actions got frickin' impossible. I mean, with Audrey it... Well, got hot for me. Was it hot for you?" He was only prodding at Nathan because he knew how easy it was. Nathan made some sort of disgusted noise. "So that's a no?" Duke asked him.

Nathan ignored the question altogether. "It's because you were falling into a deeper sleep," he began telling Duke. It sounded more like a question than a statement, but Duke agreed with him either way.

"You're gonna have to sleep eventually, so I suggest you take what I said and try, emphasis on the word _try_, to get something out of her," Duke told him.

They had to be careful with what they did and what they said, but whoever it was was able to get into their subconcious somehow. That explained how it knew of fears that Nathan hadn't ever shared before. Fears that had come up in life, but had never been thought of where Audrey was concerned. That was, until it was pointed out to him. Now that he realized it, he knew all that was said had been exactly right. He was seen as cold because of the way he'd learned how to block himself off from people. Why set yourself up for the rejection that would inevitably come?

His father had been loving, but not outwardly. Much like Nathan himself, but for different reasons. And even if he'd attempt to make something work with Audrey, who was to say even if it got that far, that it would last? Why would she stay with him if he lost the ability to feel her?

"Nathan?" Duke snapped a finger in his face, which Nathan instantly smacked away like a fly.

"Are we done here?"

"You'll let me know what happens?"

"You probably won't give me any other choice, right?"

Duke breathed in, thinking it over. "No," he finally said, opening the door to the office. "By the way, what happened between your hand and the wall?"

Nathan sighed, hating that both Audrey _and_ Duke had taken too much notice in it. It was a stupid sudden reaction that he'd acted on and now regretted.

"Don't worry about it," he finally told Duke, turning around to give him his back as he made his way around his desk.

Duke figured it had something to do with Nathan's dream, and he was kind of interested to know what he might have told her about it.

"What'd you tell Audrey about the hand?" Duke asked, trying not to laugh out loud. He knew Audrey would have pestered Nathan until he gave an answer. She was relentless when she wanted information, but there was no telling if he'd caved yet.

"Get out, Duke." Nathan warned.

He laughed to himself as he walked out of the station.

* * *

><p><strong>K<strong>**ind of a slow chapter, but the conversation was needed :)**


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